Museum director, gives us a tour showcasing the forts history, through the colonial area to its completion in 1834. And its role in the civil war. Welcome to fort mineral, located here on the very Pleasant Place we call Point Comfort, actually we call it old Point Comfort, and thats been that way for a long long time. It was here that over 400 years ago, 400 years of history have occurred. Some would say even thousands of years. Right outside the museum, happily named because youre actually the case made is nothing more than a vault inside of fort wash. Youre actually unsolved fort wall kind of unique for museums in this day and time. Were gonna walk you through the case make museum, and talk about the very interesting history that occurs here. Some of our stories reveal with the indians, the africans that first arrived here. And their plight during the American Civil War. Thousands and thousands of years ago, the natives of this land started to migrate, they migrated as far as west as mexico. And the Mississippi River valley, might have made it as far south as south america, and central america. They migrated all the way to Point Comfort, where fort monroe is located. They were hunters, they were gathering, and they lived in very successful and prosperous life here. In 16 oh seven, the english were coming here, and by that time the virginians had learned and mastered the art of cultivation. The english would struggle the first few years, but they too would prosper. We know from mr. John ralph, the secretary of in 60 19, 20 odd knee grows arrived here at Point Comfort. They were traded for goods, after that we see the evolution of laws and rules and regulations start to manage the african population here in the hampton. Next were gonna look at the war of 1812, and find out why this forward is now in existence. Why is the largest stone for in the United States here today . The war of 1812 is a backdrop to that story. In 1812 the british once again invaded the United States. They arrived right here at the chesapeake bay. There was no one here to stop them they moved all the way up the chesapeake bay, they burned the capital city of washington d. C. And they were finally stopped at a place called baltimore. The reason, for henry. After the war of 1812, the president of the United StatesJames Madison said we need to establish fortifications up and down the eastern seaboard. They recruited interestingly enough general Simon Bernard, the french engineer, who came in help just establish a system that we used today. 14 row as an example of the largest and best of all those forts. In 1819 it was decided that this location port comfort would be the location for forsman row. They begin construction almost immediately and didnt finish it until 1834. The model that we see today as exactly what it would look like an 1834 when the first soldiers traveled to populate this fortification and the gibraltar of the chesapeake. The frenchman, general Simon Bernard was a very intelligent engineer. He created many facets of this fourth made its one of the strongest rivals in the United States. One of the things he did that he had several angles on this for. So as the enemy approached the individual fort walls, there could be crossed fired from different angles on the enemy. Youll also know that it has a moat. The smoke was originally designed to allow them to move materials around the fort to help with the construction. After the fort was completed, they found another level of the feds defense for fort monroe. Foreman row is the largest stone for in the United States even today. It started its construction 1819. It would take them all the way until 1834 to come finished the construction of the fort. The original intention was to house 32 pounds artillery pieces to fire upon ships entering the chesapeake bay. It has a water exposure and really didnt worry too much about defensive the land behind it. The strong force of all of artillery all the way up until the American Civil War. Were looking at a 32 pound artillery tube. We know that this tube was built in 1846. Every case made the were standing behind would have one of these basin side of it to fire at the ports window at the approaching enemy, usually upon naval vessels. I would take anywhere from nine to 11 men to load and fire a 32 pounder. And it gets its name because it fired a 32 pound cannonball. This would be the workhorse of the military during the war of 1812, all the way up to the American Civil War. In order to fire a 32 pounder, you would need a crew of about nine to 11 individuals. Im just gonna point out some of the positions that they would hold. You have a number one and number two man. Their responsibility was to make sure that the fire mechanism of the skin was in place. So they would punch the powder bags, they would set the fuse, and they would run a lanyard that would fire this gun. At the front of the tube, you have the man who would actually low the projectiles. One man would be responsible for cleaning the tube out, ramming the projectile in down in the back of this can, but was also there to help low the ammunition from the man carrying the projectiles and powder up from their supply. So two men in the back two men in the front. You would have a gun or who was responsible for in these days we call pointing the gun, not aiming the gun toward whatever the the military objective might be. Sometimes you might have another Commanding Officer who was responsible for a series of guns being fired at the same time. It would take anywhere from about one minute to 75 seconds to load and fire a 32 pounder. These 32 pounder is that we are looking at today where the workhorse of the United States military all the way through the American Civil War. Foreman row was one of the largest strongholds of the United States military. But it never fell into the confederate hands. The department of the defense made sure that this for was secure on the very eve of the American Civil War. What you should know about these 32 pounders and what you should know about foreign row as that these guns were never fired in anger and this forte was never attacked. That speaks to its strength of how imposing it is to the enemy. What does slavery look before the American Civil War . Slaves were used primarily for agriculture. This map gives us a very clear indication of aware that agriculture was taking place. If we look at the eastern seaboard, and notice that the darker areas indicate the more slavery there was. Commonwealth virginia was certainly growing things like tobacco and cultivating cotton. You can see how intense are how populist the slave people and in slave people were here in virginia at the time. Lets go down to georgia. If you notice they were growing rice and Different Things down here. Once again we have a concentration of enslaved individuals. The Mississippi River valley same thing. The growing cotton and other cultivating cash crops that allow whites to be able to capitalize on that. Once again, look again at the concentration of enslaved people in the Mississippi River valley. In may of 1861, there was a perfect storm. Several things came together to create what we call today the contraband decision. The first thing occurred is that Abraham Lincoln promoted and assigned Major GeneralWilliam Button or to take command of fort murrow. Almost on the heels of that, the commonwealth of virginia that have been setting on the fence and under the production on whether to be an stand the production of the United States to join the confederacy made a decision. They would form a new confederate government and Vital National capital to be removed to the city of richmond, virginia. Butler takes command and virginia leaves the union. During all this, three brave individuals, baker carlson, mallory would steal a ship, row across the chesapeake bay. Present themselves at the gate of the american soldiers and say were runaway slaves seeking to be refugees and protected. They were invited into the four. The very next day, major butler interviewed the three individuals and he found out that these individuals were being used for the the Confederate Army to build trenches and to do chores around the confederate camp. That same day, the owners of these individual slaves came to retrieve them citing the fugitive slave act, which was the law of the land in the United States it said if you had a runaway slaves, you had to return to their owners. Benjamin butler being a lawyer that he was in his former life said this, so youre quoting United States law. My understanding is that the state of virginia has left the union. United states law no longer applies to. You if you want to swear allegiance to the United States, you can have your slaves back, but if not i will seize them as contraband of war because you are using them against my soldiers in the United States army. I will seize them i will take them and keep them and you can no longer have your slaves. This would create a mass of folks coming to four more in row to seek their freedom. What started out as three man became 10,000 by the end of the civil war in four short years. Jefferson davis the man is a contradiction. Jefferson davis in his early life was a graduate of the United States military academy. He served in the frontier with the United States army. He was secretary of war under president figures. He served the United States congress and he also served in the United States senate. He and his wife were the hosts during james be candidates administration in washington, d. C. When the south left and formed their own government, they invited Jefferson Davis to become its first and only president. Jefferson davis would accept that invitation and become the president of the United States of confederate america. We are standing in the cell were Jefferson Davis was held at the conclusion of the American Civil War. In 1865 Jefferson Davis received word from job robert e. Lee that they can no longer hold the federal army back from attacking the city of richmond. With that news, Jefferson Davis adjourned his cabinet assent his family on the road for their protection. Jefferson davis soon after that would follow. He would finally catch up this family right above the Florida State line. It is here were a federal mounted unit was able to capture him in his family. Jefferson davis was placed on a boat and move back appeared to form an row and incarcerated in this very cell. Some people ask why. The main reason is that Jefferson Davis was indicted on three federal charges. One, treason. Two, complicit in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Three, the mistreatment of federal soldiers in prison by the Confederate States army. In order to answer those charges in federal court, he had to be in a place where his last residency occurred, and that would be in richmond, the white house of the confederacy. It was here he would stay for maine and remaining her scars rate for almost two years. He would never see his day in court. He would never be acquitted. He would retire, right is memories and live to the age of 80. With the understanding that Jefferson Davis was charged with three federal indictments, many folks in the United States, men of wealth and influence, decided that that was not going to be the best way to heal the nation. To try Jefferson Davis and the fear that he might be acquitted would cast a shadow over 3. 2 Million People going to war and over 750,000 of them losing their lives. At the conclusion of the American Civil War, the priority of not only the congress and the president , but the citizens of the United States was to reunite the country. Make us once again a strong union. For this reason, many confederate officers would not be charged with with treason. In fact you see many of those officers actually have rules and occupied positions within ulysses asked grants administration. Youre looking at the flag of them american United States is flags for the American Civil War. Tradition has that this flag was out was hanging outside Jefferson Davis is sell to rely on a daily basis to remind him of the crimes he committed against his former federal government. The history of Jefferson Davis was a very complex one. And one that the museum tries to look at all aspects of. This cell door is probably one of the most important artifacts from Jefferson Davis is incarceration here at fort mineral. Its behind this very door that he would look out and realize that the American Civil War was over and that the confederacy was no longer part of the historic narrative of the United States. Weve taken you on a tour all the way through the civil war but there is so much more here to see. And the late 19th and early 20th century, fort murrow becomes a very important Training Ground for the United States military. It is here that almost every artillery assist was trained. And become a very important defensive position for the chesapeake bay, showing some of the most modern weapons of our time. Later, foreman role would become the center of training and command for the United States. Army the rest of our museum talks about not only the military history but the social aspects of port Point Comfort here moye fort mineral. It is here the in the arrest of our exhibit seal learn how the social exhibits of virginia merged with the military aspects of four men row. This is a living and breathing and viable community. And would stay that way until its closure in 2011. You can watch this and other arm are american artifacts weeknights, were featuring American History tv programs as a previable divisible every weekend on cspan 3. Coming up next, a look at history through photographs. First, a look at photographs from the top refers working for the u. S. Governments Farm Security administration and the office of war information. We hear from college uprising photographer David Kennedy who discusses